Hold Me Close As The World Falls Apart
by breadmakesyoufat
Summary: "You can't save me this time, Cole." she whispered sadly, letting one of her hands slide down his arm to hold his hand. Cole/Cassie at the end of the road.
1. Chapter 1

_You guys are going to hate this. Seriously. I hate this. I was planning on writing something cheerful. Maybe a little angsty. But this really got away from me. _

* * *

"Cassie!"

"Cole!"

They collided like two magnets finally coming together, hands grasping at each other desperately. Tears rolled down Cassie's face as she clung to Cole, gripping handfuls of his shirt as she buried her face into his neck. Cole's hands were both at her back, pulling her in as close as he could.

The building shook around them, the self-destruct sequence initiating and beginning to tear down the compound they were in. The year was 2016 and they'd finally tracked down the Army of the 12 Monkeys to an underground bunker, after months of chasing them around the globe and fighting to stop the virus they wanted to unleash on the earth. The virus was gone, the last test tube of it destroyed minutes earlier, and as the last remaining member of the 12 Monkeys bled out on their office floor, they activated the fail safe that would destroy the compound and any evidence of their dealings.

Cole could feel his time running out, his hands and spine were aching, and with the virus gone, he was sure to blink out of existence any moment now. But Cassie…

"Cass! Cassie we have to get you out of here! This whole place is coming down!" He yelled over the sound of an explosion on one of the upper floors. Cassie shook her head firmly, clinging harder to Cole's shirt.

"There's no point, we'll never make it to the surface before this place goes down." She said, barely loud enough, her voice muffled by Cole's shirt.

Cole pulled her off of him firmly to look in her eyes, holding her at arm's length. "Cassie we have to try! I'm going to splinter any minute now and I can't leave you here!"

He started to move for the exit stairs, pulling her along behind him before a particularly bad wave of pain went up his spine, causing him to falter and clutch his head with both hands. He cried out as another wave tore through him, stronger than he'd ever felt.

Cassie ran around to face him, grabbing at his face with both hands to force him to look at her.

"Cole, there's no point! We won, you're going to leave soon…" her voice trailed off as more tears ran down her face, causing Cole's heart to clench in his chest. "We won. I don't care if I make it out of here. I just want to stay with you as long as I can before…" She was crying harder now, her voice cracking.

Cole felt his own eyes start to fill, and blinked quickly to clear his vision of her, reaching out to touch Cassie's face gently with a shaking hand.

"Cassie please…I can't let you die here."

"You can't save me this time, Cole." she whispered sadly, letting one of her hands slide down his arm to hold his hand. A small sob escaped her as she watched his face fall, realizing she was right. His hold on her hand tightened.

"No matter what I do…you always die." He said, almost too quietly, as he stepped close to her, pulling her back into his arms again. She complied, happy to be close to him. He always made her feel so safe, even if she really wasn't.

Another explosion from one of the upper stories sounded off again, causing some of the ceiling to break off and rain dust and bits of cement down on them. At the same moment Cole felt like his insides were ripping themselves apart again, and knew he had moments before he left for good.

Cassie clutched him tightly as he cried out, yelling his name hoarsely as she looked up at his pained face. The pain momentarily passed, and Cole leaned in to let his forehead rest against hers, trying to breathe deeply. It had been getting harder and harder to splinter lately, and much more painful, but this was a new level of pain. He was almost out of trips, and he'd known this coming in, not that any of that mattered anymore. He was going to cease to exist soon, and Cassie was going to be buried alive in this fucking building…

"I should have done this ages ago…" he murmured more to himself than her as they shared air, tilting his head down and kissing her soundly, one hand moving up to gently caress the back of Cassie's head. Cassie jerked in shock, but quickly recovered and wrapped her arms around him tighter, pushing her body against his with everything in her as she kissed him back. The kiss was deep, a push and pull of built up passion coming to the surface. Cole let his hands wander, feeling the curve of her back, the softness of her hair, and gently caressing her face with both hands while Cassie simply held onto Cole, revelling in something she'd been dreaming of for years, and was now scared was going to be suddenly ripped away from her at any moment.

A larger piece of ceiling broke free and landed close to them with a crash, startling them both back into the situation they were in. Arms still tangled and panting, Cassie and Cole looked into each other's wide eyes.

"Cole." Cassie whispered as the world came down around them. Tears made streaks down her dusty face, and Cole tried in vain to wipe them away with the pad of his thumb. Another wave of pain hit him hard, bringing him to his knees. Cassie cried out his name and knelt down with him, clutching at his shoulders as he screamed, his insides tearing themselves apart. "Cole please! I need you!" she sobbed, holding her chest with one hand as her lungs struggled for air as more debris fell around them. "Cole, I_ love_ you!" she choked out desperately.

Cole looked up at her and she could see he was crying, his hands and spine riddled with pins and needles. This was it. He was going. "Cassie, I-"

And suddenly, he was gone. The hand Cassie had been clutching his shoulder with fell into her lap as he disappeared in front of her. Cassie stared at the spot he was in moments ago, her eyes wide and still leaking tears. A pained scream tore its' way up from deep within her and out, echoing off the walls as the roof continued to fall down around her, diminishing into a sob as she crumpled into herself, her face coming down to rest on her knees as she clutched at her head with both hands.

The building continued to collapse around her.

* * *

Cole was screaming when he came out of it, tears running down his face. Hands were on him almost immediately, causing him to open his eyes in panic. Ramsey was beside him, and Dr. Jones, talking at him with a frantic look in their eyes, but Cole couldn't hear either of them over the ringing in his ears. Looking around, his stomach dropped as his heart started beating out his chest.

Everything looked the same. Ramsey was here, Dr. Jones, he's even sitting in the chair like he always is when he gets back. The pain, the pain in his head is unbearable but he can't seem to find it in himself to care because his worst nightmare is coming true before his eyes.

"No…" he whispered, his eyes growing wider as he searched for something, anything that would tell him that his sinking fear was wrong.

Turning to Ramsey he grabbed his arm and pulled him in close. "Ramsey! What year is it?!"

Ramsey paused, looking at Cole closely. "It's 2043, Cole."

Cole stared at Ramsey while it truly sunk in. "No…" he whispered again, letting go of Ramsey's arm. "No, please no."

They didn't stop it. Somehow the virus got out. It still all happened. Billions of people are dead. And Cassie…

"Cassie." Her name escaped his lips unbidden, fresh tears welling up. He left Cassie in that collapsing building, and the virus…it still got out. She died, she always dies, and she died alone, begging for him to stay with her.

Cole lets out a guttural moan, clutching his head tightly with both hands. Tears run down his face, his whole body shaking uncontrollably. He can vaguely hear Ramsey and Dr. Jones calling his name, but nothing can break through to him at this point.

He thinks about her smile. The way her eyes lit up whenever he said he liked something new she tried cooking for him. How her hair smelled after she showered, and the way it would follow her around for the rest of the day. Her hands touching him in concern after each battle, asking if he was okay. Her lips on his, the desperation and need and love he could feel coming off of her in their last moments together…

He was screaming before he was even aware of it, his throat protesting and his lungs aching, but Cole just screamed. It wasn't until he felt a needle in his arm and a liquid being pushed into his veins that Cole stopped screaming and clutching at his head painfully, his world becoming fuzzy before finally going black.


	2. Chapter 2

It was a last ditch effort, and Cole knew it. Despite everything he had done back in 2015 and 2016 with Cassie, the virus had still gotten out, and nothing in the future was different. Going to Spearhead with Ramsey to check over the wreckage was upsetting, seeing the bodies of all the men and women, and even a few children, that Dr. Jones had sentenced to death in her quest for their energy core. All those people had died in vain, just adding to the casualties of the virus, and what came after.

Whether Foster had managed to create a cure for the third mutation of the virus was still up in the air, but it was certain that he had found a cure for the virus that started it all. The virus that must be now taking hold in 2016. It was Cole's idea to go back to the compound and search through Foster's lab and research facilities in a hope that the cure hadn't been destroyed in the attack, and was still useable.

Cole was almost out of trips. Whether or not he could even make it back to the past to give the cure to the CDC for mass production was questionable, and it was unlikely he would be able to splinter back to 2043, regardless of the outcome. So the fact that they did recover a few test tubes full of anti-viral medicine from Foster's lab was a giant relief…but also created more problems. Should Cole try to go back to 2016, soon after he splintered back from the events with the 12 Monkeys? He could go for an indefinite trip, that way he would have time to make it to the CDC and they would have time to replicate the cure before the virus got out of hand. If the virus could be entirely eradicated during its first strain, the hope was it would not be able to mutate to it's second form, and would therefore be eliminated entirely. That seemed like the only ideal option, but what if the trip kills him? And what if he can't come back?

Cole wasn't too concerned about that. At this point, he had accepted the fact that his time was borrowed, given the amount of pain he'd experienced during his last splinter, and how long it had taken him to get back on his feet. Plus now that he knows Cassie is gone…what was the point? Save the future if he can, a future she will never live to see ("no matter what I do, you always die"), and die either way. Whether that death is just this version of himself, or James Cole in his entirety, was up to the success or failure of this suicide mission.

Sitting in the chair, Cole breathed in deeply and clutched the small briefcase full of viral cure a little tighter to his chest. This was it. Either he died from a splinter his body can't handle, or he makes it to the past and tries one final time to save the world. Cole breathed out. Looking over at Dr. Jones, he can see the worry in her eyes, but appreciates that she's keeping it to herself this time. They both are well aware of what is at risk here. On his other side is Ramsey, trying to stay upbeat for him before he goes, but Cole can see the worry in his eyes as well. Another deep breath.

They both back away from him as the machine clunks and whirrs to life, the blue light surrounding him. Cole closes his eyes and clutches at the briefcase, praying to God or whoever the hell is up there watching that this wasn't all for nothing.

Cassie's face comes to the forefront of Cole's mind. He imagines her saying something encouraging or positive, because that's what she always used to do when they'd hit a dead end, or when things seemed to be getting them nowhere. A small smile creeps onto Cole's lips as the machine around him gets louder and brighter.

"Cassie…" He whispers her name like a prayer just before he blinks out of existence.


	3. Chapter 3

It feels like his body is being ripped in two, while also turning itself inside out. But Cole makes it. He splintered to 2016, in the alley behind the building where him and Cassie used to go for chinese food. The sight of the restaurant makes all kinds of memories of them together flood into his mind, but he quickly shuts them down as his spine sends a strong jolt of pain up his back. She's gone. And he will be too, soon. No point in getting so emotional that he can't complete his mission.

Kneeling with gritted teeth, Cole carefully sets the briefcase down and checks over the contents. Both heavily padded vials of the anti-viral liquid made it through the splinter in one piece. Sighing in relief, Cole closed the briefcase and stood back up, his entire body aching and protesting. His head was swimming, but was thankfully clearing up faster than after his last splinter back to 2043. He'd been on bed rest for a few days after that trip, and was worried it was going to be that hard on his body again this time, or worse. Maybe fighting the splinter so hard had caused that…he wasn't sure. But he needed to get moving if he was going to make this trip a success.

Looking around to get his bearings, Cole started making his way North, remembering this part of the city fairly well. As he came around to the street and passed the chinese restaurant he had been behind a few minutes ago, Cole couldn't help but look in the window as he passed it. There was the booth they'd sat in late one night, taking a break from the bookstore and enjoying some of General Sao's fine cuisine. A smile finds it's way to Cole's lips as he pictures them sitting in their booth, Cassie reminding Cole of his first experience with take out food, and how he asked if General Sao was in fact a general. The memory fades as he noticed the man behind the counter staring at him, and the smile fades with it.

Quickly moving on, Cole tries to remember which way Cassie had driven that time they'd visited the CDC building before. He had to get there as soon as he could to deliver this briefcase, and hopefully successfully convince the scientists there that he was holding a cure to a virus that might not even be released yet. Pausing to look at that day's newspaper at a stand on the side of the road, Cole figures it's been about two weeks since the events at the 12 Monkeys compound. Two weeks since him and Cassie…

Shaking his head, Cole asks the man at the news stand which way will take him to the CDC.

* * *

He arrived at the CDC about 6 hours later, and it was entirely dark out. Walking took longer than he thought it would, and he had to stop frequently to give his aching body a chance to rest. Looking up at the building, Cole could see many of the lights were still on inside, even though it must have been going on 9 o'clock at night now, and the parking lot was a little over half full. Adjusting the briefcase in his hand, Cole took a deep breath, closing his eyes. All he has to do is go in there, tell a bunch of logical, rational, intelligent human beings that he is carrying a cure for a virus that is going to wipe billions of people off the face of the earth in the next year. A virus that they probably don't even know is out there yet. All while trying to avoid talking about the fact that he's from the future because that always seems to make people think he's a raving lunatic…No big deal. He's got this. He has to. The fate of the human race is being determined by how the next hour or so goes.

Just as Cole is about to cross the parking lot to the front doors, a familiar car pulls into the driveway beside him and parks in one of the stalls near the front entrance. Cole freezes, staring at the back of the car with wide eyes as the driver's side door opens and someone steps out, seemingly in a hurry. A flash of blond hair just barely visible over the top of the vehicle makes Cole's stomach clench painfully, his mouth going dry.

"Cassie?" he mutters in disbelief, taking a few staggered steps forward, his eyes still locked on the blond hair moving around the front of the car, the person it belongs to almost within sight. Suddenly lights are on him, and a loud horn sounds on his right, cause him to curse and step back onto the grass quickly, another car coming into the parking lot and nearly hitting him. Momentarily distracted by his near hit, Cole finally fully notices how frantically people are coming and going from the building, and how it was probably a little strange that it is so lit up and busy this late at night. From what Cassie told him about business hours for most places in the past, this was unusual.

"Cole?!"

That voice. His head spins back to face the woman who had almost gotten him run over, and his legs nearly give out then and there.

Cassie. It really was Cassie. Cassie was here. She was running across the parking lot towards him before his mind could even catch up with what his heart was screaming at him. Cassie's alive! By some miracle…

There were visible tears in her eyes as she crossed the parking lot and threw herself at him, nearly knocking them both over, but Cole caught up with himself just in time to ground his feet and hold them both up. The briefcase dropped from his numb hands, gently bouncing off the grass once before resting by their feet. Quickly bringing both arms up to wrap around her, Cole closed his wide eyes and breathed her in while he held her tightly. This was real. It had to be. None of his dreams of her since his splinter back to 2043 had felt this real. She was shaking in his arms, her feet barely touching the ground as she clung to him, her face buried in his chest.

"Cassie, how…"

She pulls away just enough to look up at him, and she's smiling. Tears are still running down her face, but she's holding him in her arms and she's smiling at him and suddenly everything wrong with the world is right again.

Cole lets out an almost pained breath and pulls her in, kissing her passionately, a few tears slipping from his own eyes. She kisses him back immediately, pulling him closer with a handful of his shirt while the other plays with the hair at the back of his neck. The kiss starts out passionate and frantic, two inseparable forces coming back together after being forced apart for too long, but slowly dissolves into something more gentle and relieved. Cole pulls away first, looking into her eyes and holding her face and neck in his hands. Cassie laughs softly, brushing some hair from his face.

"I can't believe you're here. I thought I'd never see you again" she whispers, looking into his eyes, the smile never leaving her lips.

"You thought…" Cole shakes his head before leaning in to rest his forehead against hers. "Cassie, I thought you were dead! I spent days tearing myself apart for leaving you like that. I'm so sorry I left you, I would have rather died than-"

"Cole. Cole, it's okay. I'm right here." Cassie whispers gently, brushing her nose against his, making him huff and smile softly.

Pulling away, Cole smooths her hair out with his hand, revelling in the feel of it between his fingers. "Cassie…not that I'm not over the moon that you're alive, but…you need to tell me everything that happened after I left…after I splintered back. How are you still here? And the virus…" His eyes grow a fraction wider as he looks down at their feet, quickly kneeling and opening the briefcase he'd dropped in his shock of seeing her again.

Both vials are still in tact. Cole breathes out a sigh of relief, Cassie kneeling down beside him. Her hands are shaking ever so slightly as she reaches out, stopping just before touching one of the vials. "Cole…what is this?"

"It's the reason I came back. The future, Cassie, it's no different. The virus still got out somehow."

"I know. I…Cole, it's already happened. The virus is already spreading. We're too late."

Cole shakes his head as he closes the briefcase again, holding it in both hands as he stands up with her. "Cassie, we can still fix this. These vials…they're a cure for the virus."

Cassie's eyes grow wide, falling from his face, down the briefcase, and back up again. "We have a lot to talk about, it seems. Tell me everything."


	4. Chapter 4

While getting the cure into the CDC and having it distributed was their main focus, Cassie seemed dead set on having a plan first, and telling each other what had happened after they were split up two weeks ago. Cole finally gave in, a small, selfish part of him wanting as much time with her as he could get before handing the cure over, knowing full well that once he does and they're on the road to success, he'll disappear on her again, this time for good. He deserves some time with her before his death, so to speak, and she was handing him a solid reason for holding off on his impending demise. Again, so to speak.

After a short drive, Cassie pulled into a 24 hour coffee shop not too far from the CDC. It was fairly empty inside at this hour, perfect for the weird and seemingly insane conversation they were about to have in public.

Cole couldn't take his eyes off of her the whole way there, making Cassie glance at him from the corner of her eye, trying to contain a blush. Having him back was surreal. She was so sure she wasn't going to see him again after he splintered, leaving her in that crumbling building to die. Only she hadn't.

Cole went and sat at a small corner table while Cassie ordered them coffee, still keeping his eyes on her as she talked to the lady behind the counter. She turned back to look at him while waiting for their coffees, but quickly turned back around with an embarrassed smile when she caught him staring again. Cole smiled, watching her fiddle with her hair and straighten her shirt. He couldn't believe she was alive. He'd mourned her painfully after splintering back to 2043, sure she had been buried in the 12 Monkeys compound, having nightmares about her being trapped by falling debris and taking days to die, calling out to him.

"You okay?"

Cole looked up sharply to see Cassie looking at him with concern, a coffee cup in each hand.

"Yeah, just…thinking."

"That's dangerous." Cassie joked lightly as she carefully placed the cups on the table, moving to sit down across from him.

"I just…" Cole sighed, reaching across the table to hold one of her hands in both of his, rubbing her knuckles with his thumb. "I spent days back in my time thinking about the situation I left you in. Some of the scenarios that ran through my head turned into nightmares…Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine you getting out of there alive." His voice trailed off, looking down at their joined hands.

Cassie sighed too, loving the feel of his rough hands on her skin. "When you splintered, I thought I was going to die down there. And I was…strangely okay with it at first." Cole's grip on her hand tightened and he opened his mouth to talk, but Cassie cut him off. "I mean, I thought that we had won, and the world was saved. And you…" She paused, bringing her other hand up from her lap to rest on top of his. "You were gone, and we were both sure you weren't coming back. Whether it was because we really had won, or because you were out of trips didn't even occur to me at that point. I knew I couldn't even come find you in my time because you weren't going to know who I was, not to mention you're like, how old right now? In my time? You're just a kid. But this version of you was going to grow up in a world that wasn't ripping itself apart, and that brought me some peace." Her voice trailed off again, and Cole could see how sad she was just thinking of this. "So, selfishly, I didn't have the fight left in me to get out. I didn't…see the point."

Silence came over them for a solid minute before she spoke again. "Then I…" she laughs softly, squeezing his hands and looking up at him. "I thought of how pissed off you would have been if I'd said any of that to you at the time. You would have told me I was being stupid, and that I hadn't fought so hard to save the world just so that I could die and not enjoy the rest of my life."

Cole smiled at her then. "You're right, you know."

Cassie smiled back. "So I got up, went over to the exit door you'd been trying to get me to, and started climbing the stairs. It was slow, the building kept shaking and there were spots where the stairs were crumbling, but I made it. Barely. If I'd sat there feeling sorry for myself any longer I would probably be dead right now."

"I felt the same way when I was back in 2043. For a few long days, actually." Cole started, letting go of her hands to lean forward, elbows on the table and his hands running over his face once. "When I splintered back, it was some of the worst pain I'd ever felt from a splinter. I briefly thought that was the trip that was finally going to kill me. But it didn't. And then I realized where I was and what year it was and that nothing had changed…"

Cole sighs and crosses his arms over his chest, a few goosebumps raising at the back of his neck. "I thought you had died, again, for nothing. The virus had still happened, the future was still a wasteland and I couldn't go back to save you or fix it and I…I nearly went out of my mind. I didn't leave my bunk for days, mostly because my body was so beat up from the jump that I couldn't move, but also it was the relentless depression. I kept thinking about you, and how I'd left you. I had nightmares…"

Cassie stands up suddenly, grabbing Cole's attention. Moving her chair over to his side of the table she sits back down, quickly pulling on one of his arms until she can hug it to her body and rest her head on his shoulder. Cole can feel his muscles relax as she shifts closer to him, her presence reassuring him once again.

"Anyway, once I was able to get around again, I went to Dr. Jones to try and figure out if there was any other options left, or if the mission was entirely over. Do you remember what I told you about what happened at Spearhead, almost a year ago now?"

Cassie nodded numbly. "That's where all those people were killed so that you could get a new energy core and keep splintering, right?"

Cole nodded too, resting his chin on the top of her head. "Yeah. Well, I thought back to how the man who ran Spearhead, Foster, had come up with a cure for the first strain of the virus. It was useless in my time, because the virus had already mutated a few times, but in your time, right now…that's the cure for the virus we're trying to stop. So I went with Ramsey and we managed to find a few vials of the cure that hadn't been destroyed when…anyway, I knew if I could get back to this time, one last splinter, and get the cure to the CDC, maybe they can reproduce it and distribute it fast enough to cure and vaccinate people of this strain of the virus, and then it will never exist long enough to mutate."

Cassie pulled away to look up at him, her arms still lightly wrapped around his. "Cole, that just might work. The virus…it's already starting to spread, but if we have a cure for it now, we can stop this from getting out of hand!"

"Cassie, how did the virus still…We were positive that we had destroyed the last of it! I don't understand how-"

"When the compound we were in was set to self-destruct? The code used to initiate that self-destruct was also rigged to remotely detonate a container of the airborne virus into the air conditioning system at an airport in Manhattan. I saw it on the news once I was cleared at the hospital and got home. Thousands of people were infected that day, and didn't even know it until they'd gotten on their flights, or home to their families…Since then I've been at the CDC every day, trying to help figure out a way to beat this, even though I knew deep down it wasn't going to happen."

They both fell silent. Cole subconsciously leaned over to run his free hand over the top of the briefcase, reassuring himself that it was still there.

"Cassie, we have to make this work."

"We will, Cole. But can we just…sit here, and be us, for a little while longer?"

Cole leaned back over, softly kissing Cassie's forehead as she snuggled back into his side, his free hand coming over to rest on her arm.

"Okay. Just for a bit."


	5. Chapter 5

_This story is lasting way longer than I intended it to. But I have one more chapter after this, two at the most. Thanks to everyone who's read it, and especially to those who've followed it and left a review. :)_

* * *

They spent the trip back to the CDC in silence, lots going through both their minds. Pulling back into the parking lot, Cassie parked in one of the spaces available near the back of the lot and turned the car off. They sat in silence for a few more long moments before Cassie reached over and held Cole's hand, making him look over at her. Her eyes were glassy with tears.

"Cole, I don't want to sound selfish. This is billions of lives on the line, but…"she swallowed, looking down at the briefcase in his lap. "Once we hand that over and they start producing more of it, and it gets released to the public-"

"Cassie we knew this was coming. It's unavoidable." Cole cut her off with a small voice, sounding upset under the surface. "My future is going to cease to exist, and this version of me is going to go with it. I don't see any way around that."

Cassie fell silent, sniffling once quietly, holding his hand tighter. "I don't want to live in this world without you, Cole, honestly. I know it will be better because the virus will be gone and I won't get sick next year and die from it, but…I just got you back a few hours ago and now I'm going to lose you again and-"

Cole silenced her by reaching over and pulling her towards him, firmly pressing his lips against hers. They kissed slowly for a few long moments, a few tears escaping Cassie's eyes and wetting both of their cheeks. Cole pulled away first, just enough to look at her.

"Cassie, this is what we worked so hard for. I knew from the beginning the price I was going to have to pay, and I've accepted that. And knowing that you're going to live the rest of your life in a world that…that doesn't end up like mine, that's enough for me."

Cassie shakes her head firmly. "Cole I know, but I have to…Do you have any idea how much I need you in my life? And I'm scared that….that once your future is gone, am I even going to remember you? Are all my memories of you going to just…disappear? I don't want to lose every part of you!"

Cole looks at her sadly, gently running his fingers over her hair. "Maybe that'd be best, Cassie. You can't miss me if you don't remember me." he says softly, his heart breaking.

"Cole…" she sobs, leaning in and kissing him again, breathing him in like her life depends on it. Cole kisses her back, trying to hold in his own tears. If he was being honest with himself, the prospect of disappearing from existence had him scared senseless. But he was trying to be strong for Cassie, who hasn't had as much time to prepare for this as he had.

Cassie pulled away suddenly, her eyes wide. She was staring at the briefcase intently, another built up tear escaping from one of her eyes. Cole reached out and gently tilted her chin up, looking at her.

"Cassie, what? What is it?"

She was silent for a few more moments before gasping and clutching at his arm. "Cole, if your future is erased, then…Foster would have never found a cure for the virus. And you never would have time travelled back to give it to me…" she trails off, Cole's eyes growing a little wider. "Are we going to create a paradox here or something? How can we use this cure to destroy the virus, which will then erase the future the cure came from?"

They both fell silent, their minds reeling. Cole pulled away from her to lean back into his seat, groaning and covering his face with both hands. "Nooooo no no no this has to work! We don't have any other options! Why didn't we think of this in 2043 before I came back here?!"

Cassie was leaning back in her seat too, staring out the windshield at the tree they parked in front of. "Can you go back? Talk it over with Dr. Jones and the rest of them before we try this?"

"No. I barely made it here this time, I'm afraid if I try to splinter back again it might kill me before we figure this out. Also I told them to let me stay here indefinitely and not pull me back so we could get this done." Cole says, uncovering his face and also staring at the tree on the other side of the windshield. "We're screwed. We have to try this. Maybe time will sort itself out…If this works, then this new future we're creating can't exist without my future existing in the first place…I don't really know how time stuff works, but maybe it'll just branch off and we'll have two separate time-lines co-existing beside each other or something."

"Like Doctor Who." Cassie mumbled, causing Cole to look at her.

"What?"

"Nevermind. It's just a show I used to watch about an alien who travels in time. He used to always say that time is not linear, but it's…well, timey-wimey."

Cole just stared at her. "I'm sorry, timey-what?"

Cassie chucked under her breath, despite their circumstances. "I mean, if this fictional tv show I used to watch is in any way correct, maybe you're right. Maybe we'll cause a split that won't erase anything, but instead have our timelines running parallel to each other, and connecting whenever you came back here and changed something, but after this point, running separately in order the maintain the events that have taken place."

They fell silent again for a few minutes.

"Cole, you know if that's what happens…your future, your 2043…it wouldn't change, I don't think. It would still be a timeline where the virus got out and killed all those people, because it would have to be in order for Foster to create the cure we're about to use on my timeline. Everything Dr. Jones was working for…she wouldn't see the results, or know what happened."

"Unless when this happens, I get splintered back to my own timeline…" Cole says, looking at her, pulling her eyes back towards him. "I could explain it all to them, so they wouldn't try to fix it. Maybe knowing a version of themselves is living happily in another time would be enough for them. I know Ramsey would be thrilled he gets to stay with his girlfriend and son…"

Cassie nodded slowly. "But what if we're just ruining everything? What if time really can't be rewritten?"

Cole sighed, adjusting the briefcase on his lap. "Cassie we've come this far. It sounds like we can't really know what's going to happen, but we have to try."

They paused for a few moments before Cassie reached out and took her keys from the ignition, dropping them into her purse before getting out of the car. Cole took her lead and got out too, briefcase in hand, and met up with her as she walked around the car to his side. She stopped, looking up into his eyes before reaching out to take his free hand. He took it gratefully, feeling her hand in his giving him the strength he needs to go through with this.

"Cassie, you know I love you, right?"

Cassie gasps slightly and smiles, her cheeks going a little pink. "I thought you might, but I like hearing you say it."

Cole smiles back at her, a full smile with teeth, the kind she doesn't see on him nearly enough. "I've loved you for a very long time Cassie. I'm sorry I didn't say something sooner, so we could have had more time together like this. I've never been very good with words, and I didn't want to tell you and make it worse for you when I have to leave…"

Cassie nods, giving his hand a little squeeze. "You showed me how you felt in many ways, Cole, and many times. I knew, deep down. But…can you say it again?"

Cole smiles again, putting the briefcase down gently to take both her hands in his. His cheeks are a little pink, which she would have poked fun at under different circumstances, but it makes her heart flutter in her chest. He looks a little awkward before his eyes connect with hers, and suddenly he's all confidence and sincerity.

"I love you, Cassie."

Cassie smiles, not thinking about her world without him, not thinking about what they're about to do, but instead remembering all their good times together. Dancing together at a gala, watching a movie at the bookstore over some takeout after a hard night of researching, that feeling she always got when she saw him after a days of him being gone.

"I love you too, Cole."

Cole smiles, leaning in and giving her a gentle kiss, full of love. "I suppose I should tell you, my first name is James."

Cassie tilts her head at this, looking at his face as though seeing it in a new light. "James" she tests his name on her lips, making a shiver go up Cole's spine. "Yeah, you look like a James. I like it."

Cole chuckles, bending down to pick up the briefcase again. "Come on. Let's go save the world. Hopefully."

Cassie nods, and they make their way to the CDC entrance together.


	6. Chapter 6

It didn't take long for Cassie to convince her colleagues that she was giving them a cure for the viral outbreak they'd been struggling with for weeks, surprisingly. Maybe they were desperate to believe she was right, and that they were putting an end to one of the scarier and more aggressive viruses they'd seen in a very long time. Or maybe they actually believed that she had found it at the compound where she's previously told them she was at, trying to stop this virus from getting out in the first place. But the point is, much to Cole and Cassie's relief, they agreed to run some tests on the vials of liquid Cassie handed over, and upon finding out that it was a chemical compound that was likely to kill off the viral infection, and testing it on a very sick man who volunteered to be a test subject, within a few short hours, the man's symptoms were clearing up and he was showing signs of a full recovery.

After testing it on a few more volunteers and keeping the first man under surveillance, they immediately got to work replicating the cure and making arrangements to have it shipped out to highly populated areas first, and getting word out that everyone needed to take this cure whether they were currently showing symptoms or not, in order to avoid allowing the virus to spread any farther.

It wasn't until the scientists were positive this was going to work and began to ship out the cure across the globe that Cole began to feel the tingling in his hands.

It had only been a few long days since they went to the CDC and handed over the cure, but they had both spent most of their time at the CDC, Cassie helping her colleagues move the whole process along quicker, and Cole familiarizing himself with magazines and vending machines once he figured out he was going to be no help in this part of the process. Cassie did make it clear to him that if he felt himself leaving at any point, he needed to come to her immediately, but she also found herself making frequent trips down the hall to see him. No way she was letting him blink out of her life without a finale farewell.

They weren't at the CDC when the order for shipment went out, though. They'd made their way back to the bookstore, Cassie saying there was nothing else she could do at that point, and Cole agreeing that he would like to be somewhere a little more private when he goes. Best not to horribly spook the people holding the human race's chance at survival in their hands.

They were sitting on the couch, Cassie curled up into Cole's side, watching an episode of Doctor Who, which Cassie decided she needed to show Cole at least once since mentioning "timey-wimey" to him, and finishing off the last of a pizza they'd picked up on the way there. Cole clenched his fists when the tingling started, closing his eyes and sighing. Cassie noticed immediately, and paused the show.

"Cole?"

"Yeah. I'm being pulled back." He said, squinting his eyes as the pain moved up his spine and into his temples.

Cassie shivered, shifting on the couch so she could face him. "I guess that means we did it."

Cole nods, rubbing one of his hands with the other, and turning to look back at her. His eyes scanned over her whole face, committing it to memory before locking eyes with her, seeing that they were starting to tear up.

"Hey hey hey, please don't cry" he says in a rush as he reaches out to hold her head in his hands, smiling at her. "You're going to be fine."

"It's not me I'm worried about." Cassie whispers, reaching out and grabbing a handful of his shirt. "I hope you make it back to 2043 okay, I hope you keep existing, I hope I don't forget about you…" she trails off, seeing him wince in pain again. "I love you, James."

His eyes close and he smiles at her. "I wish I'd told you my real name sooner. I like how it sounds when you say it."

Cassie laughs, her throat closing up and making it sound weird, but she pushes herself forward and kisses him soundly, trying to memorize how he feels. Cole kisses her back, running a hand through her hair and smiling into the kiss. Cassie could feel him shaking slightly beneath her fingers and knew he was scared. She kissed him passionately, giving him all her support and strength in his last moments in 2016. They pulled away when the lights in the room started to flicker.

Cole is still holding her close so he can look into her eyes. "I love you, Cassie. I always will. Thank you."

Cassie's tears are flowing freely now, but she's smiling, trying to be strong for him. "Goodbye, James."

Cole smiles at her, a tear slipping from one eye, and then vanishes. The lights stop flickering, the gentle shake of the bookstore settles back down, and the couch beside her inflates to fill the spot where he had been. Cassie blinks a few times as her eyes adjust to him being gone, and she moves back to sink into the couch, facing the tv.

The Doctor was about to save the day, like he always does in the last five or so minutes of each episode, but Cassie reaches over and turns off the tv instead. She sits in silence for a few minutes, tears slowly leaking from her eyes and making them sting, before a small sob finds its way out of her. Hugging herself close, she lays down on the couch, and lets herself cry. Her heart is breaking, but she'd been preparing for this. She tries to think of Cole making it back to 2043, his time, because in her mind it still exists. Ramsey is there to greet him, and Dr. Jones helps him recover from the splinter. He lives the rest of his life healthy, getting to be an uncle to Ramsey's son, and hopefully finding someone else he can start a life with. She focuses on his face in her mind, remembers what his laugh sounds like, or how her name sounds on his lips, determined to remember him for as long as she can.

After a while she sits up, wiping her eyes, and goes about cleaning up. Pizza box in hand, Cassie walks to the kitchen, folding the box in half and stuffing it into the garbage. She leans against the kitchen counter for a minute, staring into the sink. With a sigh, she turns to go upstairs, and nearly trips over something with a small cry.

Catching herself with one hand on the counter, Cassie turns to see what she'd stumbled over and sucks in a sharp breath.

Cole's shoes. He'd taken them off when they got here after she'd convinced him they wouldn't have to run from anyone anymore. His shoe's were still here.

Her mind started racing a mile a minute, staring at the discarded shoes, a smile slowly spreading over her lips while more tears began to flow.

If her Cole doesn't exist anymore, how could his shoes still be here?


	7. Chapter 7

Cole had to spend nearly a week on bed rest after he splintered back to 2043. His organs were failing, but Dr. Jones quickly threw him in the isolation chamber, hoping it would help his body recover enough to help him survive and heal. Thankfully it had worked, and after a long week of gas treatments and talking to people through a glass wall, Cole was still a little fragile, but cleared.

Everything is the same, just as he left it, but strangely, Cole's okay with that. It means that he was right, and Cassie was now living in a timeline where the virus has been cured, living her life. She won't die in 2017 from the infection, now, so he had no reason to believe she wouldn't get to live a long and happy life. That thought gave him some comfort, and he came back to it often.

Dr. Jones had been beyond hysteric when the machine whirred to life, Cole being pulled back without her say-so. He explained what had happened to her as thoroughly as he could, but she was in tears long before he got to the end of his story. She knew he had succeeded, because the machine wouldn't have brought him back otherwise. The reality that she was never going to see her little girl again hit her hard, and she barely came out of her room for anything, except to oversee Cole's treatments. While he hadn't completed the mission with the outcome she wanted, she accepted that a version of her somewhere was now living happily with her daughter because of Cole's efforts, and for that she felt she owed him.

Ramsey takes the news better than anyone else at the compound, not hiding his relief when Cole tells him that this version of themselves is secure and won't be erased.

"Cole. Brother." he says with a smile on his face, clapping Cole on the shoulder while they watch Elena and her son read a book together in the cafeteria space. "Thank you. I know this wasn't your intention…but man. I get to be a father now."

Cole smiles, genuinely happy for him. At least someone in his timeline is happy with what he did.

Cole thinks about Cassie every day. He misses her, a numbness forming in his chest whenever he wakes up, hoping he's back on her couch at the bookstore before the fog of sleep clears. He misses her smile, her laugh, her touch, her cooking…God, her cooking. The food in the future isn't even food compared to what she used to make him to eat. Even when she'd apologize about them having leftovers, he never truly understood how anyone could complain about day old food.

Ramsey notices Cole's not with him anymore and nudges his side with his elbow, grabbing Cole's attention again. "Bro, were you even listening? I was giving you advice on how to be a great uncle to my kid."

"Sorry man, I guess my mind wandered."

Ramsey presses his lips together tightly. "Cassie."

Cole just nods.

Ramsey sighs and places a hand on Cole's shoulder. "And there's no way you can get back to her? One last trip?"

Cole shrugs, looking over at his brother. "Jones says it would definitely kill me this time. My organs nearly failed coming back here, and the serum we were using on me wouldn't be enough to keep me in tact for one last splinter."

Ramsey gives Cole's shoulder a comforting squeeze before letting go, Elena calling for him. Cole nods and waves at her. "Go, your lady wants you. I'll be okay."

Ramsey hesitates for another long moment before nodding back and turning to jog over to his family. Their family, Ramsey insists. And Cole knows he's welcome to join them. But his heart isn't in it. That got lost somewhere in 2016.

* * *

A few months have passed when Ramsey comes to Cole's bunk with news. Cole was finally feeling like his body was back to normal. No more random nose bleeds, no more pain up his spine and in his hands, but Dr. Jones was still forcing him to get a checkup every few weeks to be sure his organs are still holding up.

Cole's sitting on his bed when Ramsey knocks on his doorframe. "Hey brother. You free for a minute?"

Cole chuckles. "What important thing do you think I could be doing right now, honestly?"

Ramsey laughs and comes in, sitting beside Cole on the bed.

"I gotta ask you something."

"Shoot, man."

"Tell me, if you could leave this place and go wherever, or let's say, _whenever_ you wanted, would you?"

Cole's smirk falls into a frown as he studies his brother's face. "Don't, Ramsey. You know I don't like talking about-"

"I'm serious. If you left and could never come back, could never see _me_ again, but got to go be with Cassie…would you?"

Cole's frown deepens at the mention of her name, wincing like he'd just been hit. "Why are you even asking me that? It's not like that's an option."

"What if I told you it is?" Ramsey says slowly, watching Cole's face closely.

Cole doesn't react, just stares at Ramsey. "Is this some kind of sick joke, because honestly Ramsey I might just have to deck you one-"

"Cole, listen to me. I know how upset you've been about Cassie. I can see it every day, even though I know you're trying to act like you're okay. I know you're not." Ramsey's voice softens. "I know how I would feel if I had to be separated from Elena and Sam so that everyone else could have a better life. I honestly don't think I would be able to make that choice."

Cole remains quiet, his knee starting to bounce nervously. "What are you getting at, Ramsey?"

"I've been talking with Dr. Jones, and she says there might be a way to get you back to 2016. One last jump. Back to Cassie. For good."

He lets the words sink in, watching a stream of emotions play over Cole's face, finally landing on skeptical. "How? I almost died last time. I came really friggin' close. My body can't take it."

"She thinks she might be able to get around that. You'd still be taking a huge risk, but-"

"I'll take it." he cuts Ramsey off, a little too loudly. Swallowing a lump in his throat, he looks at his brother. "I would miss you every single day, Ramsey. I would. But being apart from Cassie is like…"

"I know, brother. You're not whole."

Cole looks down at his hands, clasping them together tightly. He felt like maybe he shouldn't let himself get his hopes up about this, but he's been out of his mind without her. Every morning waking up feeling numb, dreaming of her every night…he feels like his life no longer has any meaning in this time, in _his_ time. He has to try.

"Lets go talk to Dr. Jones. I told her to expect us. She can explain all this mumbo-jumbo to you way better than I ever could."

Cole nods and gets up quickly, following Ramsey out of his room.

* * *

Dr. Jones explains the entire process to him in great detail, wanting him to understand all of the risks of him going through with this. Cole listens intently, trying to reign in his excitement at the prospect of seeing Cassie again.

In order for this to work, Dr. Jones had calculated that if they were to manufacture a more potent and concentrated version of the serum they'd been using on Cole all along, (potent to the point that it would only work on him now because his body was already so used to the less dense versions of the serum) it would give him the extra protection he would need to survive the jump. She plans on giving him more gas treatments during the week leading up to the jump as well, as extra insurance.

Cole listened to all of this carefully, gathering from the worried look in her eyes and her insistence on all these extra precautions that there was still a high chance that this splinter would kill him, or leave him in fragments throughout time.

"Mr. Cole, I must insist that you be certain that this is what you want before we begin. I will be honest with you, there is a very high chance that your body will not survive the splinter. Also, in order to create this extra strong version of the serum, we will have to filter and combine all the serum we have left into one concentrated dose, and we do not have the supplies necessary to create more after that. This will be the last splinter anyone in this timeline ever takes…After you leave, we will be shutting down the machine and re-routing all power to essentials, in order to keep the power going at this compound for as long as we can. There will be absolutely no chance of coming back."

Cole nods once, decisively. "It's worth the risk. I want this."

Dr. Jones nods, taking off her glasses to clean them with her shirt. "I thought you would say that. One final warning, in that case. We will be sending you back to 2017, or as close as we can get you to there. This serum we will be creating has never been tested before, so there may be some fluctuation on when it sends you to. Nothing too drastic, but enough to be on guard. We're giving it a window of a few years, in order to avoid the chance of you splintering back before you and Dr. Railly cure the virus."

Cole nods again, the idea of him accidentally undoing all the work they did putting a pit into his stomach. The thought of Cassie spending a year away from him hurts his heart, but he knows they can't risk everything. He'll make it up to her when he gets there.

"Because you are permanently placing yourself within this other timeline, you must be aware of the fact that another version of you will also be there. Under absolutely no circumstances can you come into contact with yourself. The paradox would be substantial and there is no telling what would happen to both of our timelines if that happened."

Cole nods once more. "I'll be sure. Anything else?"

Dr. Jones gives him a meaningful look. "I hope you and Dr. Railly live a long and happy life together. You deserve it after all you've done for this planet, and the human race, Mr. Cole."

Cole looks down at his hands, a little uncomfortable with her praise, but looks up at her again with a grim smile. "Just get me there in one piece, and I'll handle the hard job."

Dr. Jones smiles, which is rare for her, and turns around to study the chemical equation on the board behind her. "I will start creating the serum immediately and we will start your gas treatments once I am confident that it is ready. And then, Mr. Cole, we will get you home."


	8. Chapter 8

It takes Dr. Jones just over three months to create a serum she's confident about, and each passing day, Cole gets a little more anxious. What if this didn't work? What if the calibration was so off that it sling shots him to a different continent, or way off the time period? What if he doesn't make it back to Cassie until she's an old woman? Would he even go say hi to her? Of course he'd still want to see her, but she would have had her whole life to move on and he doesn't want to give her a heart attack.

Thoughts like these went through his head daily, usually until Sam came over to ask him to play, or Ramsey clapped a hand to his back roughly to knock him out of his own head. Ramsey knew how hard this was for Cole, but every time he pulled him aside to ask him if the risks were starting to outweigh the reward for his brother, Cole would shake his head firmly. No hesitation. Cassie was worth it.

So when Dr. Jones finally called Cole into their meeting room and told him she has successfully created a serum that is of the highest concentration she could manage, Cole is over the moon. Now the gas treatments could start, lasting for a week, before he would sit in that chair for the last time, on his way to Cassie.

The week dragged on longer than the three months prior, it seemed like. Every day he was getting closer to his finale splinter, and every night it was getting harder and harder for him to sleep, his nervous energy and thoughts keeping him up. On the third night, Ramsey actually got Dr. Jones to give him something to help him sleep. He needs to be in top form if he wants to survive this trip.

The day finally came. Cole spent an hour in the morning after breakfast in the gas chamber, followed by another hour pacing around, waiting for the effects to stop fogging up his brain. He made his way to the machine once he was cleared, meeting up with Dr. Jones and Ramsey.

They were talking but stopped when they noticed him come in, both turning to look at him. Ramsey was smiling, which made Cole smile back.

"It's time, brother!" he exclaims, wrapping Cole up in a hug, squeezing him a little too hard. Cole groans, squeezing him back as hard as he can. They part, Ramsey keeping a hand on Cole's shoulder. "I'm going to miss you something fierce, Cole." he says seriously.

"Oh, don't get soft on me now, Ramsey." Cole jokes, but the joke doesn't reach his eyes. "I'm going to miss you too. Thanks for setting this up for me. I owe you."

Ramsey shakes his head. "You owe me nothing. You're the reason I'm still here, with a beautiful wife and son. Have I ever told you how beautiful and perfect Sam is, because-"

"Yeah yeah, this whole compound knows the sun shines out your son's ass Ramsey, don't worry." Cole says with a genuine laugh, Ramsey laughing too.

Reaching into his pocket, Ramsey pulls out a piece of paper and hands it to Cole. "Here. This is from Sam. I decided it would be easier if he isn't here to see you…well, vanish. But he knows you're leaving and he wanted me to give you this."

Cole takes the paper and opens it carefully. It's a drawing of him, Ramsey, Sam, and Elena, all outside in the sun, smiling. Cole feels a lump form in his throat, and looks up at Ramsey. "Tell him I love it, and I'm going to keep it with me wherever I go."

Ramsey nods, squeezing Cole's shoulder again before letting go. "You're really good with kids, Cole. Maybe you and Cassie should-"

"Heyyy, don't go there man! I have to make it back to her first!"

They both laugh, Ramsey poking fun at the colour of Cole's cheeks, when Dr. Jones calls him over.

"Alright, Mr. Cole. I think we've prepared you as much as we can. Are you ready?"

Cole nods, gently placing the drawing Sam drew for him into his shirt pocket, his hands shaking slightly with nervous energy.

Dr. Jones motions for him to lift the sleeve of his shirt and injects him with the serum. Cole immediately feels it take hold, flowing through his veins until his whole body feels a little shaky and numb.

"This stuff really is something…" he mumbles, needing Ramsey's help to get up into the chair.

"I've just injected you with the chemical properties of nearly 5 injections of the normal serum, so you are going to feel a little sick when you splinter. The effects should wear off relatively quickly, though." Jones tells him, giving him a pointed look while he settles into the chair. She walks over to the console, motioning for Ramsey to step back.

Ramsey looks down at Cole, leaning over him slightly, a hand grasping each of his arms. "Goodbye, brother."

Cole smiles at him, reaching up to pat Ramsey's chest a few times roughly. "Take care of your family, Ramsey."

Ramsey smiles, his eyes sad. "Say hi to Cassie for me. Wish I could meet her."

Cole smiles, her face appearing at the forefront of his mind. "I think you'd really like her, man. She's perfect."

Ramsey gives his arms one last squeeze before he backs away from the chair, the machine clunking to life and the blue light engulfing Cole.

"Good luck, Mr. Cole." Jones calls from the console as the light gets brighter, blinding Cole until he closes his eyes.

He's terrified in this moment, his hands clenching into fists on the arm rests, his eyes screwed shut tightly. The sound of the machine is deafening, and he can feel his body starting to tighten and his spine starting to tingle painfully.

Cassie's face pops into his mind again, and she's smiling at him, giving him strength. Cole focuses on her, using her name as a mantra in his mind. _'I'm coming, Cassie.'_

He vanishes then, the machine clunking once loudly before slowly shutting down, the room going deathly silent as everyone stares at where Cole was a moment ago.


	9. Chapter 9

Cassie sighs loudly as she places another box of papers on the table in the middle of the room, wiping her brow with the back of her hand once. Her hair is up in a messy bun, glasses discarded on the table, barefoot and wearing a pair of long yoga pants and a loose button up shirt. The windows and front door of the bookstore are propped open, letting in a lovely spring breeze and helping to air out the place.

She sighs again, looking at the pile of stuff she still needs to sort through before sitting down on the couch, folding her legs beneath her.

It's been one year and a few months since Cole splintered out of her life. The virus was truly gone, the CDC being thorough with the vaccinations a year ago when her and Cole handed over the cure.

Cole.

Cassie leans forward, resting her elbows on her knees and holding her head up in one hand while her eyes slowly drift over to the boots she kept by the front door. His boots. The ones he unintentionally left here when he splintered back to his time. She'd kept them as a reminder that he was alive in his time, when she needed reminding on her darker days.

She'd been trying for the last year to move on, or at least fall back into a normal routine. She still has her job at the CDC, and she's living in her apartment again now, alone. Aaron tried to come back into her life once it was all over, and Cassie honestly tried to make it work, but in the end she had to tell him her heart was elsewhere. He'd gotten angry at this, going off about how Cole was never coming back, and she was wasting her life waiting for him, before storming out of her apartment. She'd been sad to see him go, but mostly because he was a comfort from her old life. Her pre-Cole life. And now he is gone too.

She found herself visiting the bookstore often, telling herself it was to make sure no one broke in or that the place didn't get too dusty, but she found herself glancing over at his boots often, reassuring herself that they are still there.

After a year, she finally decided she needs to try and shed some of the weight on her chest. The bookstore was the first thing she thought of. All of their old papers and leads were still laying around. She'd never gotten around to cleaning them up, but if she was being honest with herself, she'd kept them around as a safety net. They reminded her of him, and of their time together. But he wasn't coming back, so there was no point in keeping any of it now. Their mission had been a success.

Getting up off the couch, Cassie goes back over to the lead board, gently unpinning another map and placing it in an empty box on the table behind her. She keeps moving along the board, adding to the box before she comes to an old photo pinned behind some notes. She sucks in a breath, gently taking it from the board and holding it in both of her hands.

It's Cole. The photo she got when he accidentally splintered to North Korea, showing her where to meet him for the second time. Her fingers idly run over his face before she looks away sharply, blinking back tears.

Turning, she puts the photo on the corner of the table. This one is too precious to throw away.

Suddenly, a loud thump comes from the front entrance, making the bookshelves shake slightly, followed by a familiar groan. Cassie freezes, standing up stock straight. More shuffling comes from the front entrance, making her turn slowly. When her eyes land on him, her world stops spinning for a long moment.

Cole is here. He's sprawled out on the ground, groaning under his breath while he sits back up. She watches him with wide eyes as he turns to look behind him, grabbing one of the old boots he'd left here over a year ago, which he tripped over on the way in, tossing it with a grumble and rubbing his knee.

Cassie finally makes herself move, finding it difficult to breathe. The floor creaks under her foot and Cole looks up, seeing her for the first time. She watches as his eyes widen, and he's immediately trying to get up, but it looks like his legs are numb because he stumbles until he reaches out and grabs at a table by the door for support.

"Cassie" he whispers hoarsely, staring at her while his legs wobble slightly, his grip on the table causing his knuckles to go white.

She springs into motion, running over to him and bending to get under his arm, holding it over her shoulder while her other arm circles his back. He lets go of the table and leans on her more heavily, causing Cassie to falter slightly.

"Couch…" he mumbles, doing the best he can to walk over to the couch, relying heavily on her support, before collapsing onto it with a groan.

Cassie kneels down in front of him, running her hands over his face and moving his hair. He's breathing heavily, but she can't see anywhere where he's bleeding or wounded.

Cole opens his eyes and looks down at her, a tired smile on his lips. "I made it. You're here…" he breathes out the last part, leaning forward to cup her face in his hands. He wipes a few tears from her cheeks with his thumbs, alerting Cassie to the fact that at some point she'd started crying.

A small sob bubbles up from her throat and she leans forward, crashing her lips against his. He responds immediately, their kiss frantic and desperate. He'd been dreaming of this moment every night for months, trying to remember what she feels like, what she tastes like. But his dreams never could match up to the woman in front of him now. He can tell she's holding back, slightly, trying not to cause his body anymore pain, and Cole makes a mental note to show her how much he's really been missing her once he's recovered. Cole's having a hard time breathing, but he holds out as long as he can before he pulls away, panting.

"How are you-…" Cassie pants, her cheeks pink, staring at him like he might not be real. "Cole, please, I-"

"It's okay, Cassie. I'm okay." Cole smiles weakly. "I'll tell you everything, I want to tell you everything right now, but my body…and my _head_" he groans, shifting his weight slightly on the couch. "I just had the crap kicked out of me. Can I have some water?"

Cassie nods, rubbing more tears from her eyes and getting up quickly, making a beeline for the kitchen. Rushing back with a glass of water, she watches Cole chug it down before handing her the glass back. His eyes close and he seems to relax a little more into the couch. Cassie puts the glass on the table and goes to sit next to him, careful not to jostle him.

After a few minutes he tilts his head to see she's staring at him. She smiles when their eyes connect, and he smiles back.

"How are you here?" Cassie asks, reaching out to hold his hand gently in hers. "Cole, it's been over a year since you left, and I was just starting to let myself believe that you weren't going to come back."

Her voice is sad, and he notices all the boxes around the shop, and the clear holes in their lead board.

"Cassie I'm sorry I didn't make it back sooner." He squeezes her hand, pulling her eyes up to his. "I didn't think I was going to be able to at all for months…" he trails off, remembering how hard those months had been on him, and knowing that it was probably just as bad for Cassie.

"But I'm here now. And I'm staying."

Cassie looks up sharply at this, her heart leaping. Cole gives her a steady look while her mind races. "You mean…"

"Yeah Cass. They're dismantling the machine back in my time, and we used the last of the splinter serum trying to get me back here. I can't go back even if I wanted to."

Cassie is clutching at his hand harder now, her expression worried. "But Cole, what about Ramsey, and-"

"Me and Ramsey made peace with my decision." Cole cuts her off softly. "Besides, if it wasn't for him convincing Dr. Jones to help me, I wouldn't be here at all. He wanted this for me. He said I wasn't…" he trails off, eyes soaking in the way the afternoon light is bouncing off Cassie's hair, and how her hand feels holding his. "He said I wasn't whole, without you."

Cassie leans in, kissing him gently. "This feels like a dream."

Cole hums in response, gently pulling her over to rest her head on his chest. She hesitates before relaxing into him, scared of hurting him, but Cole's hand lazily stroking her hair reassures her.

They stay silent for a long while, enjoying the breeze coming in through the open door, feeling more at peace than either of them had since they lost each other. Cassie finally speaks up, not moving from her spot on his chest.

"We're going to have to get some documents made for you, so you can live a normal, legal life here…" she trails off, already thinking of their possibilities. "Cole, what about…the other you? He didn't just-"

"Jones told me that he's still out there, and I can't risk coming into contact with myself. It might destroy everything."

Cassie swallows thickly, moving to look up at him. "You told me you were in foster care, not too far from here."

Cole nods, thoughtful. "Now that the virus doesn't happen…maybe I get adopted by a nice family? I could end up anywhere…" he smiles at that thought, the idea of growing up with a loving family warming his heart. It's what he had always wanted.

Cassie smiles too.

"We can figure this out later, once you're healed up and we have documentation for you. We can move if we have to, somewhere where you…" she laughs, "where the other you, won't accidentally find us."

Cole chuckles at the madness of it all, kissing Cassie's forehead, warmth running through his veins at the sigh of contentment she lets out.

"You know, I've heard the weather in Florida is really nice."

Cole shifts away to look at her again, seeing a playful smile on her lips. "C'mon, don't tease me." he laughs, and she smiles brighter.

"I'm serious! I don't think we'd have to worry about a paradox in Florida, and they do have some really nice beaches."

Cole continues to look at her, trying to figure out where she's going with this.

"I'm sure I could find work up there, and you could figure out what you want to do, in time." Cassie brings a hand up to cup his cheek, which he leans into. "I want to take you there."

Cole stares at her, his heart beating loudly in his chest. Cassie's smile brightens as she watches the gears turn in his head before he finally sits up, grunting softly, and kisses her, cutting off her protest about him hurting himself.

He cups her face in both hands, picturing their future together in his mind. As long as she was with him he honestly didn't care if they lived under a rock, but Cassie, his Cassie, this beautiful, intelligent, wonderful woman is willing to uproot her life for him, and his heart can barely handle it.

He pulls away, smiling brightly at her, and he can see nothing but love in her eyes.

"Well?" she asks breathlessly, brushing a few stray hairs from his face.

"I will follow you anywhere, Cassie." he replies, and she smiles warmly, pulling him in for another kiss.

* * *

_that's all folks! :) I had to get this story done quickly because it's been filling my mind for days and making it hard to get any homework done, haha._


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